


Walking Home

by alec



Category: How to Train Your Dragon (2010), Rise of the Guardians (2012)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Drabble, M/M, Modern Era
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-02-03
Updated: 2014-02-03
Packaged: 2018-01-11 00:22:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 618
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1166371
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alec/pseuds/alec
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Winter had never bothered Hiccup, no matter how cold it was.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Walking Home

Hiccup pulled his coat closer against his body. There was a light snow falling around him in the darkness, pierced only by the occasional streetlamp as the boy walked. It wasn't himself he was bracing for; rather, the papers that this whole excursion had been about. The communal printer was back on campus, and so he had to walk to print out his homework. Misjudging the weather, he had forgotten his bag at home, and the snow was just dense enough to leave splotches on the freshly-dried ink. So he was awkwardly pressing the papers to his body beneath his coat.

Hiccup let out a breath, puffing out like smoke. There was nobody else out walking the streets right now; it wasn't late, but it seemed to be late enough. The world felt so serene, with the snow appearing out of the dark sky, drifting down and melting against his face. The cold didn't bother him, however; he could feel it was cold, but that had never been a problem for Hiccup.

The cold had always been calming for Hiccup. He didn't stay warm easily, but even when he was so cold that he shivered down in his bones, he had never felt resentful. It felt like an adventure. And when winter would come around, Hiccup found himself glued to the windows, watching and waiting for the first snowfall. And late at night, when Hiccup laid alone in his bed, the still air of his room felt oppressive, like he was drowning in himself. So even on the coldest nights of the year, Hiccup would open his window just a crack, to let in the frigid air, and he would bundle up in his blankets, letting the cold wash over his face and calm him, taking away his anxieties and his worries and his loneliness. Winter had always been his favourite season.

Hiccup stuck his free hand into his coat pockets, trying to find the keys to his building. His winter coat seemed to have too many pockets, and he never could remember which pocket he had put his keys in. Fishing them out of the last pocket he searched, Hiccup moved to the lock, allowing himself to slow down, hoping to let the cold last a little longer. Right before inserting his keys, Hiccup paused, finally walking back to the sidewalk. He closed his eyes and tilted his head back, letting the snow fall on his face, soothing his eyes and relaxing his muscles. Hiccup's breath came slower, wisps billowing around falling snowflakes.

After a moment, Hiccup adjusted the arm that pressed his papers against his body. Dipping his head with a relaxed smile, he turned his back to the road and returned to the door, unlocking it and stepping inside.

* * *

Across the street on the roof of one of the opposing houses sat a barefoot boy, noticeable against the backdrop of the black sky by his blue hoodie pulled down over his face, and the shepard's hook that he used to balance himself. The boy remained silent, breathing in the cold air but exhaling no puff of warm smoke.

Eventually, a car drove past the spot where Hiccup had stood, shaking Jack from his melancholy. He looked up and pulled back his hood, blinking away the wetness in the corners of his eyes. Jack gazed at the moon; not asking any questions nor getting any, just looking forward. At length, he smiled, picked himself up, and let the air carry him away. There were things still left to do.

But Jack would always watch over Hiccup. No matter how many lifetimes the little viking would live, Jack was going to be there for all of them.


End file.
